Boku Ga Iru
by XeroKitty
Summary: Ran has been kidnapped. The Black Organization has found out Shinichi's secret. In order to save her, he and Heiji Hattori must infiltrate their headquarters with the help of a former member.
1. Another Case

_**Boku Ga Iru (I'm Here)**_

I know the series is running 350+ and eight movies. I have to wonder where this guy gets all these ideas from to keep the show running as long as it has been, really. But, I thought it was about time Shinichi Kudo actually came back and returned for good. I have no sources that say the story will end this way, or end anytime soon, for that matter. I just really want Shinichi and Ran to be together already, which is actually what this is based on...

**Warning: **I do not have previous knowledge on how the series is actually going to end, nor do I know if I'm anywhere close in my assumptions when I write this story. Be aware that I am in America and have only seen the fourtysome episodes that were released on television, all at the begining of the series. Seeing as I'm missing about two hundred fifty episodes and eight movies in there, I could be saying some totally wrong things in this attempt at a whole different genre (I was never really into mysteries, I'm ashamed to admit). A lot of Conan/Shinichi/Ran angst and love in here, but that's to be expected. All I'm saying is that after all of the crap the both of them have been through, they'd better wind up together. After Ran forgives Shinichi for his horribly long absence.

**Disclaimer:**I'll say it again--I don't own these characters. I have no idea what's going to happen to them; this is only speculation and minor fantasy living on my part. The original cast and ideas of Detective Conan belong to their rightful creator (whose name I can't recall right now but seeing as it's six thirty a.m. at the present moment, I'm hoping you'll all forgive me).

**Background:** It is the winter break before school begins again, and Ran has started applying to several colleges/universities, all the while desperately worried at Shinichi's continued absence. She chooses, for several reasons (all three of them male), to stay close to home and has continued persuing her modeling career as well. Her face is well-known in the business, though she hasn't really broken out mainstream, she prefers to continue along with her education and focus on modeling afterward. Conan (Shnichi) is watching this all with a sinking feeling that he is ruining Ran's life.

**Notes: **The points of view will be continuously changing. Sometimes they will appear in Shinichi/Conan's perspective, sometimes in Ran's, and almost always the third person view. There will be an indication at the begining of a new scene to let you know if it has changed.

_**Chapter 1**_

"Please, detective," the woman took a step forward, "tell me where my son is!"

"Why don't you tell me where he is, Ms. Mackensie?"

Everyone in the room gasped and whirled on the figure in the chair. Detective Kogorou Mouri sat in the armchair in the corner of the room, his head propped up with one arm, leaning against the rest. Conan Edogawa peeked out from behind the chair at his captive audience; he took special note of the older woman's shocked face. Turning back to face the wall, he lifted the voice-changing device back to his lips and started his explanation.

"You staged your son's kidnapping, making it seem like an outside job," Conan stated in Kogorou's voice. "You hid him, then contacted your ex-husband, Mr. Shannon, and told him Zachary was missing."

"But I recieved a phonecall--!" she tried.

"And you also recieved a ransom note, constructed of letters clipped out of a newspaper," Conan interjected. "You made that letter; I found the remainder of the newspaper in your wastebasket. And you lied about recieving a phonecall. It seems odd that a kidnapper would leave a ransom note, and then call and make the same demands over the phone, so, I had Inspector Meguire check the call records of the past week."

"There haven't been any unknown phonecalls to your house in the past month," Meguire held up the telephone files as confirmation. "And there wasn't a single call listed in the timeframe you claimed the kidnapper phoned your house."

"As a newly-divorced housewife, bills started piling up," the small detective continued in the other's voice, "I noticed them on the countertop when we first arrived. It must have been stressful, Ms. Mackensie. And you got desperate. You came up with this scheme as the perfect solution to get back at your husband for the divorce and end your debt in one move. You knew Zachary's father loved him very much and would do absolutely anything for him, including paying off a huge ransom."

"Is this true, Ellen?" Mr. Shannon blinked at her.

"Certianly not!" she shrieked. "Why would I call a detective if I thought he weren't in danger?"

"The alibi of a concerned mother," Conan answered simply. "You came to me before contacting the police, do you remember telling me that? And to skip such protocall on a missing person case is quite unusual, wouldn't you agree?" Ellen Mackensie stared at Detective Kogorou in shock. "You said Zachary didn't come home yesterday and you had assumed his father had picked him up from school. But Mr. Shannon was working yesterday, weren't you sir?"

"Y-yes," he looked from his ex-wife to the detective in the chair, "Inspector Meguire actually met me in front of my building, right Inspector?"

"He's right," Meguire nodded. "We delivered the news of his son's kidnapping as he was leaving, actually."

"He had no idea what was going on because he was at work all day long," Conan explained, "and he has an entire floor of employees to confirm this. Where were you, Ms. Mackensie?"

"I was...at the grocery store," she stammered.

"Acutally, you were picking up your son from school, as always," he continued. "Only yesterday, you did things differently. You told Zachary that morning to meet you at the end of the block instead of wait for you to come to the front of the school."

"And how would you know that?" she snapped. "Were you there?"

"No, but I have four witnesses who were."

Conan quickly retied the red bow around his neck and ran out from behind the couch and out of the room. He gestured to the three waiting outside the room and came back in with Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko in his wake. Conan ran back behind Kogorou and pulled off the bowtie, lifting it to his mouth.

"Now then," he spoke once more in Mouri's voice, "two days ago, right afterschool, where were you four?"

"Waiting by the school entrance for our parents to come and pick us up!" Mitsuhiko proclaimed, happy to be helping in an investigation.

"Was Zachary a classmate of yours?"

"Well, no," Ayumi made a face, "but he was in the class across the hall from us. We almost always saw him afterschool. He would wait in the same place as us for his mom. She always drives right up to the gate and opens the door for him."

"What a good memory," Conan grinned to himself. "Now answer me this: did you see Zachary afterschool yesterday?"

"Yeah, he got into his mom's car," Genta spoke up. "Like Ayumi said, she usually comes all the way to the gate but yesterday he ran all the way to the end of the street and _then_ got in his mom's car."

"Come to think of it, Conan was the one who noticed him," Mitsuhiko added. Conan quickly dropped the bowtie and poked his head out from behind the couch again.

"Yeah, I thought it was weird that Zachary didn't wait for his mom to get there. He's always saying that he'd get in trouble if he left before she got there." He sat back down in his hiding place and recovered the bowtie voice-changer, cleared his throat, and continued in Mouri's voice again. "Ms. Mackensie, you told Zachary to meet you at the end of the block so that no one would notice you when you picked him up. You even forgot to play the concerned mother and didn't even bother walking in to the school to ask his teacher about his whereabouts because you already knew where he was. You went straight home, gave him a snack, and hid him in your attic." He glanced out to see the paniced look on the woman's face. "While the search for Zachary was going on here, downstairs, he's been playing quietly up in the attic like a good boy because you told him if he behaved and didn't make a sound, his daddy would come back. Am I right?"

"How could you...?" she gasped.

"Rachel and Conan found him." At his words, Ran came into the room, holding the six year old boy by the hand. "When I got suspicious, I sent the two of them to search the house. Since you yourself invited them inside, they weren't breaking any laws in doing so."

The boy confirmed everything.

"Daddy!" he squealed and ran over to his father, throwing his arms around the taller man's legs. "Mommy was right! She said if I played hide-and-seek in the attic that you would come and find me! But you took too long! I was getting hungry, and Ran gave me something to eat in the kitchen because she said you were busy talking with her daddy about something important." Conan figured he was done; he placed the bowtie back around his neck and stepped out from behind Detective Mouri to listen to the final parts of the confession. "Are you done yet? Are you going to leave again, daddy? Mommy was really sad when you left and so was I but I tired to be a big boy like you said I should but I missed you and I'm so happy you're back!"

Inspector Meguire motioned to some of his underlings and they came toward Ms. Mackensie, withdrawing handcuffs. Still holding on to his son, Mr. Shannon shook his head and waved them off.

"Please, don't do that," he said softly. "Not in front of Zachary. I don't want him without his mother."

Zachary turned to the woman kneeling on the floor: "Mommy, are you leaving now?" Tears rose up in his eyes. "Please don't go away! We just got daddy back!" The woman put her face in her hands and sobbed loudly. Mr. Shannon knelt beside her and put a hand on her back.

"Why didn't you just tell me, Ellen?" he whispered.

"I didn't know what to do!" she wailed. "I didn't want to lose Zachary like I lost you, but I was so angry...!"

Conan felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up at Ran. She was staring at the scene with a troubled expression on her face.

"Ran...?" he touched her hand.

"I...don't understand why people do things like this..." she said softly. "I can't imagine how I'd feel if someone I cared for disappeared..." Her gaze became distant. Conan knew that look--she was thinking about Shinichi Kudo. Who, ironically enough, was standing right next to her. Conan felt a wave of sadness as he realized that Ran was still very worried about him. He had to do something soon; he hadn't phoned her with the voice-changer in a while. Maybe that would assure her?

"I'm sure Shinichi will call you again soon," he spoke up. "That case is probably really, really tough if he still hasn't solved it yet."

Ran shook her head. "I don't want a _call._ I want to _see_ him. I... I miss him, so much."

_See?_ That would be hard... But, Conan always came up with something. He turned his eyes back to the scene in front of them, his eyes unfocused as he was already thinking of how to let Ran see Shinichi.


	2. Pleasant Surprise

_**Chapter 2**_

_"Hattori, I need your help."_

_"Kudo? Long time, no speak! How can I assist the Great Eastern Detective?"_

_"I'm concerned about Ran."_

_"Why? Is she missing?"_

_"Don't jinx me, Hattori. That's the last thing I need right now."_

_"So, it's just guilt eating at you then?"_

_"I just want her to know I'm okay. Please?"_

_"That's a long trip for me to make, Kudo. You owe me big time."_

_"Oh just get over here."_

* * *

Ran pulled the scarf tighter around her neck and hunched down against the cold. She wore the matching red gloves she had recieved from Shinichi nearly a year ago, and clutched a small jacket against her body, looking up the empty, dark street.

"For pity's sake, I _told_ him to take his jacket with him!" she mumbled into her scarf and slitted her eyes against a sudden gust of icy cold wind. At the end of the street, Dr. Agasa's house sat quietly, warm light pouring out from the windows and welcoming any passerbyers. Although, no one would be crazy enough to be walking out here at night. Except her, of course. Ran paused at the locked iron gates leading to a large, two story house just beside Agasa's. It was dark and blanketed in snow, no trace of a path being broken into the freshly fallen whiteness. She hadn't expected any sign of the house's occupant, but, she had to check...

The lights of the first floor suddenly blazed to life, and Ran saw a figure come out of the house. They shut the open door behind them and the walkway was plunged into darkness once more. Go figure, the streetlamp was out. She squinted her eyes at the figure, trying to see who it was--maybe a burglar? If that was the case, she had to protect this place. It was the only thing she had of--

"Ran!"

--Shinichi. Ran blinked stupidly as the figure cut through the snow that was nearly up to his knees and fiddled with the gate's lock. With a click, she saw him push it open, slip out onto the sidewalk, and close it once more. She watched his motions in stunned silence. He turned to her and blue eyes sparkled out from behind dark bangs.

"Loss of words?" he chided playfully.

"Shi...nichi...?" she choked back a gasp.

"Of course," he grinned at her. "You didn't think I'd be gone forever, did you?" Ran's eyes widened and she took a step forward, reaching out to touch his sleeve. Her fingers brushed against leather. "I'm real, I promise."

"Where... Where have you been?" she demanded and he laughed.

"Same as always," he shook his head. "I told you, that case I'm working on is really difficult, Ran. In fact, I came here to get some things I needed from my house."

Her eyes fell to the snow-covered pathway: "So, you're leaving again?"

"Not for much longer," he promised. "I have a good feeling about this. I might even wrap this up as early as next week." A hand came to her chin and tilted her eyes up to his. "Have you been worried about me, Ran?"

"I..." she whimpered.

"Ah, enough about me. I don't have much longer to spare," he made a face. "How about you? What have _you_ been up to?"

"Um, nothing..." she blinked.

"I heard you were in a modeling contract. Is that true?"

"It's nothing major..."

"I bet you kill them out there," he winked at her. "I can just imagine you sauntering down that runway."

"You watch your mouth, Shinichi Kudo!" her temper flared as much as her cheeks did.

"There's the Ran I know!" he laughed and touched her arm softly. "I get worried when you're like that. Frowning will ruin your pretty face."

She blushed harder: "Shinichi..."

"Oh, here," he said suddenly and handed her a small package. "I was actually going to visit you at home and give this to you, but, I've gotta get going."

"What is it?" she took it in her gloved hands.

"A belated birthday gift," he smiled. "I didn't forget, I was just busy. Sorry I could only call you so far. But, I'm working as hard as I can on this thing. I promise you, I'll come home as soon as I close the case."

"You promise?" she held the package tighter to her chest.

"Yeah," he grinned. "I'll see you soon, Ran."

She watched him turn and walk up the street. He passed under a working streetlamp, but was already pulling his snow hood up against the cold. He turned at the other end of the block--she could just barely make him out--and lifted a hand. He returned the wave and disappeared. Suddenly, the coldness of the night seemed to slip into her jacket and her scarf and she shivered hard, turning on her heel and rushing to Dr. Agasa's. She banged on the door (a little harder than she intended) and heard voices from inside.

"That must be Ran with my jacket."

"Now why would you make that poor girl walk all this way in the cold? She could get sick!"

"Then stop scolding me and let her in!"

"Oh!" The door opened, and the portly, pleasant-faced scientist nearly pulled her inside. "My dear, I'm so sorry you had to come all the way out here for this little brat." He closed the door.

"Why you--!" Conan growled, then looked up at the un-responsive woman. "Ran? Are you okay?"

"Ah..." she shook her head and smiled down at him, handing him his jacket. "I'm fine, Conan. Here you are. Put this on so we can go home."

He took it and slipped one arm into the sleeve. "What's that?" he motioned with his head to the small box in her hands.

"It's--!" she blushed hard.

"Did you see Shinichi, then?" Dr. Agasa smiled at her and she looked at him. "Yes, he dropped by the house for a moment."

"Did Shinichi give that to you?" Conan smirked.

"Y-yeah," she nodded, a blush rising on her cheeks. Thankfully, her entire face was reddened from the cold.

"Let's see it!" he jumped up excitedly.

"Okay," she bit her lip and fiddled with the tightly-wrapped box. After pulling off a few layers of plain light blue wrapping paper, she wound up with a small white box. Her fingers trembling slightly, she pulled off the top and nearly shrieked. A sharp breath was all she could get out.

"Let me see! Let me see!" Conan jumped up and down. She knelt beside him and offered him the box. He tilted it down to his eye level and smiled at her. "Wow, he must really like you, Ran! Diamond earrings!" They were indeed diamonds, small and finely cut, set in a pair of tiny golden hoops. She was afraid to touch them, they looked so delicate. Conan did it for her. He pulled them out of the box and reached up, removing the small silver studs she wore and inserting the gold ones in their place. As he snapped the first shut, he pressed the diamond further back in place, listening for the click. When he heard it, he nodded to himself and ran to the other side to put on the other earring. Activating this one as well, he stepped back and put the silver earrings in the box, closing it and looking up at her. "They look so pretty on you!"

"He's right, my dear," Dr. Agasa beamed at her. "They suit you perfectly!"

Ran gently touched the diamonds at her ears and let her lips curve into a soft, slight smile.

"Thank you," she whispered.

* * *

Heiji Hattori rounded another corner and peered out to the street. Ran and "Conan" were walking back up to the girl's apartment hand in hand. She was wearing the earrings. _The kid must have put them on her right away_, he grinned to himself. Then, he blinked and narrowed his eyes, looking farther up the street, to the alley they had just passed. Someone was there, he was sure of it. And they had been watching the two walk up the street. Heiji stepped out from his hiding place and slowly began to tail Ran and Shinichi, making sure he was in plain sight, but too far back to be recognized at a glance. He kept his eyes on the pair in front of him, careful to keep glancing back into the alleyways they passed. He didn't like the feel of that person hiding back there. It was almost like Ran and Shinichi were being targeted...but with a famous detective like Kogorou (_Shinichi_, he corrected himself), Ran herself could be a target from friends or family of apprehended criminals her father inavertedly put away. He knew Shinichi knew that, and that was probably why the radio transmitter earrings were given to her. Safety. _I still don't like the feeling I'm getting. _Heiji relaxed only when Ran and the boy were safely in the apartment. 


	3. Ran's Abduction

**Author Notes: **Sorry for the OOCness. I've never written these characters before. Oh, and I'm using manga-based names for the characters, so, I've got a list of the names they're commonly known by:

-_Ayumi, _Amy

-_Genta, _George

-_Mitsuhiko, _Mitch

-_Sonoko, _Serena

-_Melkior, _Gin

-_Kaspar, _Vodka

-_Shiho Miyano, _Ai Haibard

-_Akemi Miyano, _Masami or Michelle (Case of The Missing Man or The Mystery Mastermind)

* * *

_**Chapter 3**_

"Conan!" Ayumi cried.

"Is that your cool sun-powered skateboard?" Genta ran up with her and Mitsuhiko. He turned to his friends and smiled, holding up the aforementioned invention.

"Yeah, it is," he answered as they crowded around him.

"Does your sister know you have this?" Mitsuhiko asked nervously.

Conan rolled his eyes and gave up explaining that Ran was _not_ his sister. "Well, she knows I have it, but she doesn't know what it does."

"Why did you bring it today, Conan?" Ayumi leaned over his shoulder, looking at the green board with the orange stripe running across it.

"I just felt like it," he shrugged and put it down, placing one foot on it. "I want to go meet Ran at her school."

"Oh, okay," the little girl waved at him. "Don't go too fast, Conan!"

"You _have_ to let me ride that thing again sometime, Conan!" Genta shouted after the other boy as he pushed off and began rolling down the sidewalk. He waved back at them and settled his other foot on the board, crouching and tapping the switch with his heel. The solar panels opened up on the surface of the board and he instantly sped up, weaving in and out of the collection of people on the street as he made his way to his old highschool. As he approached the gates, he tapped the button again and the solar panels retracted. Conan coasted to a stop near the front of Teitan Highschool and hopped off his board, scooping it up and standing as the bell rang for dismissal. Students practically burst out of the double doors (it was the last day of school; Winter Break was finally here) and Conan leaned back against the concrete wall, looking for familiar faces. He named girls and guys in his head, people he had for classes and for afterschool activities, old clients and fans of the once-great Shinichi Kudo, Ace Detective. His thoughts had wandered and now he got pulled back into the present by familiar voices.

"He gave you WHAT?" Sonoko Suzuki yelped, making the students around her flinch. Ran Mouri laughed nervously and turned to her best friend, shushing her violently. Sonoko touched one of the gold diamond earrings Ran now wore and shook her head. "I take back every bad thing I said about Shinichi. Diamonds! Wow, he must really be in love with you, Ran!"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Ran shouted, a little too loudly. More people turned to stare. She blushed and lowered her voice. "He said it was a birthday present. That's all."

"Oh yeah right," Sonoko grinned all-knowingly. "He loves you, Ran. It's obvious."

Conan blushed hard.

"Then how come he hasn't come home?" Ran said dejectedly. "It's been a year, Sonoko. No case has ever taken him this long before! I think…I think he's avoiding me." Conan fell out from behind the wall. "Oh, Conan!"

"Oh, it's you," Sonoko said, unimpressed.

"Hi, Ran. I came to walk you home," he stood, giving her his most endearing smile.

"Oh, how sweet!" she cooed, patting his head. "Thank you, Conan!"

"Right, since you have your company," Sonoko lifted an eyebrow at a couple of boys walking past them, "I'll find mine." She waved half-heartedly and moved with a honed grace through the groups of kids. Ran rolled her eyes and grinned down at him. Conan gave her a bemused look, as if to say: _That's _your _best friend!_

"Shall we go then, Conan?" Ran extended her hand. He nodded and took the offering, turning slightly red as her fingers wrapped around his. Conan heard a car door opening as they turned onto the backstreets but all he could do was look up into Ran's slightly-blushing face. When Sonoko had declared Shinichi loved her, her face had turned the darkest red he had ever seen it go. He had gone red too, but for different reasons: he wanted to tell her that with his own voice, not have someone else declare it out loud in public. Ran squeezed his hand gently and he blinked himself out of his thoughts again. He was drifting off quite a bit, but he always did around her anyway.

"So, what did you and Shinichi talk about last night?" he cleared his throat.

Ran blinked, and the red in her cheeks came back. "Um, nothing, really. He asked how I was and he told me he might be coming home soon!" She suddenly beamed down at him, and Conan felt like crap for lying to her so much. "Isn't that great?"

"Yeah," he looked down at their feet as they walked. The sound of footsteps grew louder in his ears now that he was paying attention to his surroundings. An engine was running behind them.

"Hey, Conan?"

"Hmm?"

"I was thinking how much you and Shinichi are—"

He never found out what she was thinking. She gasped and her hand was yanked from his. Conan whirled around and something hit him in the head, hard enough to send him crashing to the ground. He groaned and struggled to lift his head as he heard Ran struggling off to one side.

"Hurry it up! Get in!" a sharp, cold voice commanded and in his head, he saw the face it belonged to: Melkior. There was a thud as something was thrown into the car. "Conan!" Ran's frantic voice. The slamming of a door, and the opening and closing of another. Tires screeching on the pavement. Conan got to one knee and shook his head, his glasses clattering to the sidewalk. They were broken. He tried to get to his feet but he wobbled and sank back down to his knees.

"Ran…!" he grunted, tumbling forward. He smacked into the concrete and closed his eyes fully, the pounding in his head getting louder and harder. Someone was shaking him and he tried to open his mouth and beg them to stop, but hot, thick liquid poured out instead of words.

"Kudo!" Heiji Hattori shook him again. "Get up, man! They've taken her!"

_Taken… Ran…_ He tried to stand again. He fell uselessly to the ground once more. He was being picked up. He heard Hattori mumbling something about a skateboard, then they were flying down the streets, the wind brushing his hair off his pounding forehead. Conan slowly opened one eye.

"Glasses…" he croaked. After they rounded a sharp corner, Heiji reached into the inner breast pocket of his letterman jacket and handed the broken specks to the boy. Conan groaned and closed his eyes tight against the pain. "Agasa's…"

"No, hospital. You're skull's probably cracked in two," the older-looking boy responded sharply, leaning into the turn and zooming around another corner. Conan shook his head and instantly regretted the movement. He groaned and his eyes cracked open. Heiji looked determined as all hell. But he was too. Conan reached up and grabbed the cap off Hattori's head, and smacked him with it. He nearly tumbled off the skateboard, but recovered. He opened his mouth, but Conan beat him to it.

"Agasa's," he rasped. "Fix glasses… Only way to find Ran…"

His friend grunted and they abruptly changed directions: "Let me explain everything to Agasa while he bandages you up." Conan nodded. It's the only thing he could do; he had no strength left. He closed his eyes once more and lay his trust in Heiji Hattori.

_Ran… Not you, oh god no… I'm so sorry…

* * *

_

She threw herself against the plexiglass window. Her screams were soundless on the other side of the glass. Kaspar glanced back at the brown-haired girl and his face met with her fist hitting the glass. She cracked it. He blinked and turned to his boss.

"Sir, I don't think this was a good idea…"

"Shut up," Melkior turned the wheel hard and they skidded around a corner, and they heard a thump as the girl in the backseat toppled to one side. "She's the only way we can get the kid."

"But why didn't we just tail _him_?"

"Because he'd know if we were on to him."

There was an extended silence as the men in black continued to drive back toward headquarters, taking a lot of turns and doubling back so the girl could never find her way back if she ever happened to escape.

"Who knew he survived?" Kaspar shrugged. "I didn't see or hear about him after we gave him that poison."

"Akemi Miyano's younger sister is still missing," the blond man grunted, making another hard turn and listening for the thump of the body in the back. "There's rumor that she altered the drug she gave us and instead of killing a person, it does something else."

"What, like a fake death?"

"Or something. We don't know yet. We need Shiho."

Swerve. _Thump._

Melkior chuckled evily. Kaspar glanced at his partner and wondered for the first time if this man was wholly mentally sound.


	4. Protecting Ai

**Notes: **I was asked in my most recent review of this story, not to use the original codenames of Melkior and Kaspar (Gin and Vodka, not in that order). So, being the nice person that I am, I agreed. :P

* * *

_**Chapter 4**_

Conan tried his best not to pull away and yell in pain. Dr. Agasa winced for the boy as he cleaned off the huge gash on the back of his head. Heiji Hattori, the Great Western Detective, sat on the opposite couch, his elbows on his thighs and his hands clasped loosely between his knees. His head was bowed in thought; he had just finished relaying the events of the afternoon to the doctor.

"And how long has these men been tailing you, Shinichi?" the old man asked his charge. Conan gritted his teeth and shook his head as little as he possibly could.

"I noticed them last night," the other boy spoke up. "One of them, anyway. They were definitely after Ran."

"But I don't understand why," Agasa reached for the bandages. "I'm sure Shinichi hasn't let his identity slip," he looked down at the bloody boy and added: "have you?"

"I haven't said a word," he grunted with effort.

"The organization must have figured it out," Hattori guessed. "They must have overheard her talking about Shinichi, and must have definitely seen me with her last night. They probably thought what she did—she was talking to the real Shinichi Kudo."

"In other words, this is my fault," Conan groaned as Agasa tied the bandage tight around his skull. He hopped off the couch and began to pace, ignoring the wave of dizziness that slapped him upside the head. "I asked Hattori to pose as myself, for Ran's sake. And they saw, assumed I was still alive, and grabbed her."

"How did they guess you were still alive, though?" Dr. Agasa gathered up the materials. "I admit, they could have heard her talking and possibly seen her with Heiji last night, but what would cause them enough suspicion to put a look-out at your house?"

"The newspapers," Heiji concluded. "There was nothing in them about a mysterious death, and with a reputation like Kudo's, the murder couldn't have gone un-noticed. It would have been all over the papers for months."

"And with only that, they guessed you were still alive?"

"I've done more with less," Conan responded dryly, jamming his hands into his pockets.

"So, we have to figure out where they've taken Ran," Heiji spoke up.

Conan looked up at Agasa. "That's why I asked Heiji to bring me here—we need to fix my glasses. I can't track her without them."

"It will take some time to fix them…" the older man spoke hesitantly. Conan slammed his hands down on the coffee table, knocking over the candy dish placed atop it.

"Ran's in danger and this is the only way I can save her!" he shouted. "I want those glasses fixed _yesterday!_"

"Shinichi," Dr. Agasa tried to touch his shoulder reassuringly, "I can work as fast as I dare, but these things take time, and you know that."

"What about that girl?" Hattori spoke up suddenly. "The one that shrunk too. Hai…"

"Ai Haibara!" Conan blinked. "Of course! She's _got_ to know where their headquarters are located!"

"Wait!" Heiji interrupted. "If they figure the same thing that happened to you happened to Ai, wouldn't they be after her too?"

"Shit!" Conan ran to the front door.

"Shinichi!" Dr. Agasa cried after him. "Your injuries—!"

"Fix those glasses, doc!" he yelled over his shoulder and wrenched the front door open. "Heiji, contact Detective Mouri!"

He tumbled outside and looked around frantically, spotting the solar skateboard in the grass by the porch. He grabbed it and ran out to the street, throwing it on the ground and hopping onto it. His heel kicked the switch, the solar panels opened, and Conan rocketed off to Ai's apartment.

* * *

The two men moved her body from the backseat of the car and into the freight elevator. Vodka hit the button for the floor they needed, and the doors slid closed with a hiss. They began to ascend. Gin glanced down at the young woman lying in a heap on the floor.

"Is she going to tell the truth, do you think?" he asked his superior.

The other shrugged: "If she knows what's good for her."

"What about that truth serum thing Shiho was working on before she tried to cut and run?"

"We'll use it. Let's just hope it doesn't fail, like the last drug."

"Hey, do you think if the kid didn't die from it, then Shiho—?"

"Someone's looking for her now. We already assumed she got in contact with detective-boy. Now it's just a matter of time before we locate her."

"Are they going to bring her back to headquarters?"

"No."

The elevator arrived at its destination. The doors opened and Vodka bent down and grabbed the girl's arms. Gin took it as a non-verbal "shut up" and reached for her legs. His eyes caught something on the other man and as they lifted her up and exited the elevator, he found he couldn't stop himself.

"Boss, what happened to your face?"

"She kicked me as I was giving her the tranquilizer."

"Oh."

* * *

Conan leapt off and didn't even bother retracting the solar panels. He raced up the steps to her apartment and banged on the door. Several startled yelps sounded from the room and he mentally cursed—Ai was not alone.

The aforementioned girl pulled open the door. "Shi—er, Conan? What are you doing here?" She got a better look at him. "And what happened to your head?"

"Ai, we have to go. We have to leave now!" he grabbed her wrist.

"What's the big hurry, Conan?"

He glanced at her company: Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko. It was Genta who had spoken. "Conan, your head!" Ayumi gasped.

"Did you fall off the skateboard?" Mitsuhiko raised an eyebrow. Conan couldn't think of anything else off the top of his head, so he nodded.

"You still haven't answered my question," Genta crossed his sizable arms over his chest. Conan tried to think of something to tell them.

"I… Ran's invited Ai to dinner."

"And not us?" Ayumi looked hurt.

Conan locked eyes with Ai and pleaded with her silently. She lifted an eyebrow and glanced back at their friends.

"We'll be right back," she called and shoved him out into the hallway. He stumbled and she closed the apartment door behind them.

"What's going on, Shinichi?" she asked in a low voice.

"It's the Black Organization!" he nearly shouted and she hushed him violently. He lowered his voice, but only slightly: "They've taken Ran!"

"What?" she gasped. "But, they couldn't have found out about you, could they?"

"Hattori thinks differently, and so do I," he shook his head. "I came to get you and move you to a safe place."

"Did they follow you here?" she glanced nervously over his shoulder.

"I don't think so," he glanced back as well. "But you're in danger as long as you're alone. I'm taking you to Agasa's place for a bit—"

Her eyes skipped over his shoulder and he froze. Heavy footsteps sounded behind them on the staircase. Wordlessly, he grabbed her hand and pulled her back inside the apartment, shutting the door behind them and leaning against it, gasping for breath.

"Conan, where are your glasses?" Ayumi came up to them. He looked at her, then at Ai, and then at the room itself.

"Look guys, there's no time to explain," he got away from the door and motioned for Ai to lock it. She did without question. "There are some men in black coats around here, and I think they're after me." He couldn't say what was really going on, that would take too much time. "Because I live with Kogoro. It might be one of the people he's convicted, or their family or friends."

"Are you pulling our legs?" Mitsuhiko made a face. Conan paused to listen out into the hallway. The footsteps were on this floor, and getting closer.

"No, really, you have to believe me!" he said in a rush. "We all need to hide, and whatever happens, be totally silent and _stay hidden! _These guys mean business!"

"Do they have guns?" Ayumi whimpered.

"Most likely," Ai spoke up, then looked down at her feet.

"I have to get out of here," Conan walked into the center of the room, looking around. "Now, I have an idea, but you guys have to do _exactly_ as I say, alright?"

The four present nodded.


	5. Daredevil Escape

_**Chapter 5**_

Conan peered out through the slits in the closet door. The handle rattled visibly. He waited silently to see what the person would do, and jumped as an abrupt, high-pitched sound briefly pierced the silence of the apartment. _Silencers._ Christ, they meant business. Beside him, Ai breathed heavily, her eyes wide as she peered out the closet and into the foyer of her apartment at the tall man dressed all in black that had entered. His eyes were covered with thick, dark sunglasses and he had a black hat pulled down low over his forehead. They watched as he moved his head about, taking in the appearance of the seemingly-empty apartment. The gun he had shot the lock off with was dangling from his left hand.

"Come on out, Shiho," he murmured, walking into the apartment. "I know you're here." Conan felt Ai take his hand and he squeezed it reassuringly. The plan would work. It _had _to. "The boss is highly disappointed in you," he continued, stepping around the room. He poked his gun behind the curtains lining the large single window/door leading out to the balcony. "If you come quietly, I won't kill you right away." He chuckled to himself and the young detective rolled his eyes. He _hated_ criminals with a sense of humor, or lack thereof, in this case.

The man slipped into the kitchen area, just as Conan had anticipated. If he didn't hurry, he would discover the other's hiding place. Conan opened the closet door as quietly as he could and led Ai toward the center of the room, laying his skateboard on the ground. He shifted it as quietly as it could, and when he got it where he wanted it, he leaned down and adjusted the dial on his super sneakers (Conan thought briefly to thank Dr. Agasa for all these inventions when he saw him again…_if_ he saw him again). He planted one foot on the floor and nodded at Ai, and she lay the soccer ball in front of him. Conan reared back and kicked it as hard as he could, then jumped onto the skateboard and pulled Ai on behind him as the glass door to the balcony shattered into tiny pieces.

"What the hell—?" the man cried from somewhere in the back of the kitchen and Conan quickly brought his foot up, turning the sneakers to their highest setting. Then he kicked off of the ground and they sped toward the newly-made exit. The man ran into the living room area as they zoomed past him and Ai smiled at him, giving him the middle finger as they blasted out of the apartment. Conan touched the concrete balcony with the toe of his shoe and they were projected into the air by the strength of his enhanced push-off. They cleared the balcony railing and the street down below, landing on the roof of the building across from it. Conan stopped and looked back. The man was on the balcony, just standing there wondering how in the hell two kids had cleared the railing and the gap on a skateboard. Then he shook his head and looked at the two on the opposite building and lifted his silenced pistol. He saw them. Conan faced forward and kicked off the ground with his super sneakers again, launching them across the roof and on to the one beside it. He hit the point of it, held out his arms for balance, and grinded his skateboard along the line of the angled roof, landing soundly on the next one (which was mercifully flat) and sped away. He smirked as he imagined the confused, blank face of the man in black. Then he returned his attention to roof-hopping. Ai clung to his waist as he reached up and vaulted them up onto a higher roof with one hand, wobbling as he adjusted to accommodate her extra and inexperienced weight. After another two roofs, they reached the gap which signified another street. Conan was in no mood to jump this one, and he didn't think Ai would hang on a second time, so he rode on the line of the rooftop on two wheels, the nose of his board pointing up as he made the sharp turn. His eyes measured the distance to the ground, and he tried to find some way to get at least five feet closer to the ground; at this height, if he tried to get down, the board would snap with their combined weight. Conan spotted the metal-covered telephone wire extending from the rooftop of the next building down to the fusebox on the pole near the bottom.

"Hang on to me!" he called back and hopped onto the slightly lower roof, then skipped the board up, letting the flat bottom strike the metal covering and skid down. He cringed at the sound his board was making but it was necessary. He jumped the couple of feet to the sidewalk, surprising a few people who had been walking along, and pushed off with his powered sneakers again, zooming down the street toward Agasa's house. With the best of luck, they could only guess where he was going, and assume he had hidden her in his own house and not in his friend's.

Back inside the apartment, hushed voices came from inside the bedroom.

"Do you think it's safe?" Ayumi whimpered.

"I haven't heard anyone moving around for a while," Mitsuhiko assured.

"The guy with the gun is probably gone now," Genta opened the door a crack. He peeked out. "And Conan must have taken Ai and escaped."

"I wonder why he had to take her instead of leaving her with us," the small black-haired child pondered aloud.

"Maybe he just wanted us to be in groups instead of alone," the little girl suggested.

"Or maybe he just left us here to die," the larger boy grunted, crossing his arms.

"Genta!"

"Well, it's true! How come he only took Ai with him?"

"Maybe…he wants us to help him!" Mitsuhiko suddenly said. "Maybe he thinks we can do something about the guy in black!"

"Yeah, but," Genta spoke up again, "he had a gun! What are we supposed to do? We're just kids; no one would believe us if we went to the police."

"He just wanted us out of this," Ayumi stopped their argument. They blinked at her. She crossed the small bedroom and hoisted herself onto the edge of the bed, putting her chin in her hands and leaning her elbows against her knees. "He wants to keep us safe. I think he took Ai with him because she has something to do with the men in black too…"

"Come to think of it, the guy was looking for someone named 'Shiho'. That's a girl's name," Mitsuhiko mentioned.

"Looking for Ai? But why?" Genta made a face.

"I don't know," Ayumi said softly. _Oh, Conan... Please, be careful. And protect Ai._

"Here you are, Shinichi," Agasa handed him the repaired glasses. Conan took them and put them on, finding the switch for Ran's earring locator and flipping it on. The image on the right lens flickered to life and showed a small red dot on the upper left quadrant of a circular grid. The distance indicators signified she was still in city limits—near the river.

"Thanks, doc," he sighed in relief.

"I had to take out your tracker lens—it needs a full repair, and I knew you didn't want to wait that long, so the left lens is just a normal lens. But, I was able to restore the receiver, and so you can still use the earring radio."

"Is the skateboard okay?" he asked.

"I'm going to have to fix it up," Dr. Agasa frowned. "But it should be okay if you want to use it to get there."

Conan looked up at the setting sun and frowned. It was almost dusk; it wouldn't be much good in a little, but it could probably get him at least halfway there.

"Ai, I was going to ask for your help," he turned to the girl he had rescued. She looked up from her clasped hands, and stared at him blankly.

"Hmm?" she blinked.

"I need to know the inner workings of the organization: names, ranks, jobs, layout of the building—"

"But you don't even know if they're in the same headquarters anymore," Dr. Agasa moved to his worktable behind him.

"Was it by the river?" Conan glanced at his tracker.

Ai nodded: "I had a room that faced the river and the town."

"It's on the other side of the river," he nodded, confirming this with another glance at his tracker. "I need all that information, Ai."

"I have a better idea," Agasa came back around, handing them duplicates of the Detective Boy's badges. "This way, Ai can track you as you move through the building, and you can give Conan directions," he looked from the boy to the girl. They turned their eyes to each other and nodded, pinning the new badges onto their clothing. "Also." They looked up at the scientists' voice. "You should take all the gadgets I've made for you. I don't know what you're going to expect in there. And I have no idea how you're going to save Ran."

"Shinichi," Ai spoke up. "While you're there, you have to make a stop in my room. All of my research notes are in a file cabinet under the desk by my window."

"Including the research on the drug that made us shrink!" Conan caught on. _But…what do I do first? Free Ran, or get the information? If I help Ran escape, someone will notice! I can't have her wandering the halls with me. I need to get her out! But once I leave, there's no guarantee I can get in a second time to get the notes. Dammit!_

He opened his mouth to say something.

"Kudo! I'm coming with you."

He blinked. Heiji Hattori walked into the living room, adjusting the baseball cap on his head.

"We'll get Ran _and_ bring this organization down with one sweep. What do you say?" he winked. Smiling gratefully, Conan stood and grabbed his skateboard off Agasa's table.

"I say we go back to my house so I can get some things," he walked to the door. "And then, we take them down for good."


	6. Getting Ready

**Notes:** I'm so sorry! I haven't been updating this story and _Forsaken Promises_ for a while! I've been working on the _In Undertones_ one a lot though. I have time-management issues. -rolls eyes- Well, this is closing faster than I imagined, really; I hope it's coming out somewhat decent.

* * *

_**Chapter 6**_

The apartment that doubled as an agency was abandoned, and it looked like it had done so in a hurry. Kogoro had probably rushed out the instant Heiji had informed the private eye of his daughter's whereabouts—not that he could do anything about it. He was a bumbling fool. These were Conan's thoughts as he glanced around the house, checking for attackers. When he had checked every room twice, he motioned Hattori inside and ran to his room to retrieve his gadgets. The other detective stayed in the main room/office area with his hands in his jacket pockets, glancing around.

"Jack Daniels rum, awesome!" he perked as he saw the alcohol cabinet. He crossed to it and pulled the clear bottle out, reading the label as he grinned.

"Hattori, put that back!" Conan yelled, coming out of the room with a backpack slung over his shoulder. "Be serious. We have to go rescue Ran—I can't have you drunk!"

"You're too tense," his friend looked at him as he slipped the bottle back onto the shelf. Conan gave him a bemused look. Heiji held up both his hands. "Hey, I know your girlfriend got kidnapped—"

"She's not my girlfriend."

"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I know if I were in your position, my reaction would be the same. I know you're worried, but if we rush in there we'll be caught and Ran could get seriously hurt." Conan noticed with gratefulness that Heiji had refrained from stating the obvious truth. Just hearing what they would really do to her was unnerving…

"Like she's not in serious trouble already," he grunted, heading for the door.

"The _point_, Shinichi," Hattori followed, "is that we need a plan. What were you planning on doing? Busting in through the front door with the entire police force behind you?" Conan paused, his hand on the doorknob. He glanced up at the taller boy and suddenly had an idea.

"No… You are," he went back to the office area and grabbed the phone.

"Huh?" the other blinked.

* * *

"Police Department," Inspector Meguire picked up the phone.

"_Inspector! It's been a while, hasn't it?"_ a familiar voice came through the earpiece.

"Who is this?" the portly man raised an eyebrow.

"_Inspector, I'm hurt! It's Shinichi."_

"KUDO!" People turned to look at him.

"_Shh, inspector, please,"_ the voice on the line remained calm. _"I'm calling in regards to Ran."_

"Shinichi, Ran's been—"

"_I know."_ Meguire had to wonder where this kid got his information from. And there was even more to wonder about when he said: _"And I also know who did it and where you can find them."_

"Who…? How…!" he could only look at the phone in shock. _This kid has to be psychic!_

"_The Black Organization,"_ his voice held a cold tone. _"Have you heard of them, Inspector?"_

"Who hasn't?" the inspector fell back in his chair, a hand coming to rub his temples. "The largest syndicate in Tokyo, heavy players in the weapons and drug rings."

"_Right,"_ Kudo's voice confirmed.

"They've also been involved in almost every major crime for three years now," he continued. "But we never have enough evidence to convict them, and we've never been able to catch one of them at the scene of a crime."

"_You can hold them on the count of abduction and nail them for all the other charges you_ _want when we get their files."_

"Kudo, we can't go into their building without a warrant or probable cause," Meguire sighed. "Besides, we don't even know _where_ the hideout is!"

"_You've got plenty of probable cause: you're rescuing a kidnapped woman. And don't worry about the hideout's location—I know where that is too."_

"But…!" Meguire was at a loss of words for a moment. Then: "Even if we go in like that, we're still limited to capture and a brief search. Important pieces of evidence would only be recovered if they revealed where the documents and files are. You know protocol."

"_Yes, but I'm not with the police department,"_ he heard the detective's smirk in his confident voice. _"I can go in and get you your information. Leave that to me. My main concern is getting Ran out of there as fast as possible. Heiji Hattori's coming down to the station,"_ he added. _"He'll lead you to their headquarters."_ The line went dead. Inspector Meguire sat at his desk in shocked silence for a minute before springing into action.

"Akoshi! I want the entire goddamned _building_ out in front in _five minutes_! Have them prepped for raid, ambush, and infiltration! We'll meet heavy resistance. Go!"

* * *

"You know," Heiji looked at the other detective dryly, "when I said that thing about busting in with the entire police force, I _was _kidding!"

"Yes, well," Conan hopped down from the office table and headed for the door again, "your sarcasm sucks."

"It does not!" the other followed him out. "You're just an ass!"

"Here," Conan handed him a sheet of paper with a map sketched on it—he had been drawing it the entire time Meguire had been on the phone. "This is a map to the headquarters. Just go to the police station and round up everyone you can. I'm trusting you to get Ran out."

"Go in, capture bad guys, rescue hostage—got it," Hattori took the map.

"Don't screw this up, Hattori," Conan sighed, turning in the direction of Dr. Agasa's house once they were on the street. The police station was in the other direction, so they paused to finish their conversation.

"I know my role, Kudo," he assured with a grin. "You just do yours."

"Good luck, Heiji," he ignored the last part of his statement.

"Oh, Shinichi," he thought suddenly. "What do I do if that bumbling fool of a P.I. comes along?"

"Kogoro?" Conan made a face. "For god's sake, keep him out of that building! He'll make a huge scene and screw up everything!"

"Go in, capture bad guys, rescue hostage, keep crazy, overprotective dad out—got it," Heiji said with a smile.

* * *

"You're really going then," Ai adjusted the frequency on the Detective Boys badge in her hands. Agasa finished the transmitter earpiece and handed it to Conan so he could put it on himself. The young detective took that and the set badge from the tabletop and fiddled with the two.

"Yeah," he said as he attached the earpiece successfully. "I have to. Thank god Heiji agreed to help or else I have no idea how I would have pulled this off." He fixed the badge onto the inner lapel of his white undershirt.

"Checklist, Shinichi," Dr. Agasa came around, setting a few devices on the table. "Most important—Ran's transmitter device and tracking lens."

He flipped the eyepiece on and the red dot flickered to life in the right eye lens. "Check."

"Two way Detective Boys badge walkie-talkie?" Agasa asked.

Conan switched it on. "Check."

* * *

Ayumi jumped as Dr. Agasa's voice suddenly sounded in her bedroom. _"Loaded wristwatch tranquilizer?"_ And she slipped out of her chair, glancing around the room when Conan's voice answered: _"Check." _She rifled through some of her old clothes and lifted up a particularly dirty shirt—she had worn this one on her latest assignment with the Detective boys. _"Wristwatch flashlight, fully charged?"_ The voices were definitely coming from here: the badge. She unpinned it. _"Check."_ Conan's voice again. Blinking, she ran out of her room and to her parent's bedroom, reaching for the phone.

_Riiiiiiiiiiiiing!_ She scooped it up quickly: "Mitsuhiko? Genta?"

"Are you hearing it too?" they chimed together on the line; whoever invented this three-way phone call system was a genius in Ayumi's eyes right now.

"What are the two of them talking about?" she wailed as the voices continued over the badge's frequency. _"Super-stretch suspenders?" "Check." "Sonic sneakers?" "Check."_ "Conan's been acting weird ever since he came to Ai's house earlier…"

"They have to be up to something!" Genta huffed.

"Yeah, but what?" Mitsuhiko asked the question they were all wondering.

"_Lunchbox copy/scanner/fax machine?" "Triple check."_

"Let's meet up and see if we can find him and Ai," Ayumi suggested.

"But, I'm not allowed outside after dinner…" Mitsuhiko started.

"We'll meet at the library—say you're doing a school project!" Genta exclaimed and hung up. Ayumi did too, and she raced back to her bedroom. She grabbed her bookbag and stuffed the badge deep inside (_"Voice modifying bowtie?" _-unfamiliar voice- _"Check."_), then thumped down the stairs.

"Daddy! I'm going to meet my friends at the library!" she hollered over her shoulder.

"Ayumi…!" she heard her father's voice follow her out but did not stop and turn around to answer. She launched herself into a flat-out run, streaking down the sidewalk toward the public library three blocks up.

* * *

"If you see Ran at all, give her this," Agasa handed him a dark gray winter jacket.

"Doc, I know it's cold outside but…" Conan lifted an eyebrow.

"It's an all-purpose coat!" the scientist explained happily. "The outside is fire and waterproof, and the inside retains heat for an extended period of time! It's woven to be bullet and bladeproof as well!"

"And why don't I have one?" Conan asked, looking impressed.

"That _is_ yours," Agasa grinned. "You just don't _fit_ into it!"

"…oh," Conan huffed, rolling up the jacket as tight as he could and stuffing it into the backpack along with his lunchbox device. Ai was waiting for him at the door.

"Good luck, Shinichi," she mumbled.

"Don't look so upset; I'll be back soon!" he smiled reassuringly.

"Don't underestimate the Black Organization…" she looked back, frowning. He pulled open the door and left the house with one final retaliation:

"They shouldn't have underestimated me."


End file.
